Friday, January 23, 2015

Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix, Arizona: Part 3 (2014 edition)

We’re now at the spot indicated by the green arrow in the following trail map (borrowed from the DBG web site) and will be exploring the paths inside the perimeter of the Desert Discovery Loop Trail, including Quail Run Path.

Now we’re at the edge of the Sybil B. Harrington Cactus and Succulent Galleries, just across the path from the Berlin Agave Yucca Forest (to be covered in my agave post). This is where you find the DBG’s impressive aloe collection. Unfortunately, the lighting was so harsh that I didn’t take many photos, and most of the ones I did take weren’t good enough to show here. But I have a few to give you a taste.

Interpretive display highlighting the differences between agaves and aloes

Aloe confusa (I don’t know what botanists mean when they use the word “confused,” but this aloe didn’t look confused to me; in fact, it was quite happy)

The massive plant on the left is Aloe marlothii, the flower aloe on the right is Aloe cryptopoda.

Aloe elgonica

Aloidendron dichotomum (previously Aloe dichotoma), the fabled South African quiver tree. Its flowers remind me of lupines. I think they’re among the prettiest of all aloe flowers. This tree aloe is one of six that has been moved from the genus Aloe to a new genus called Aloidendron (see this post for more information).

Aloidendron dichotomum

Aloidendron dichotomum

Aloe dhufarensis. I’d never heard of this species before, but I was immediately drawn to the ghostly white color of its leaves. This native of Oman is usually solitary and can grow to 2 ft. across. I’ll be looking for one! Hardy to the mid-20s; needs full sun.

Aloidendron ‘Hercules’. I lost count of how many ‘Hercules’ I saw at the DBG but they’re clearly thriving there.

The double-arch steel canopy in the Sybil B. Harrington Cactus and Succulent Galleries still takes my breath away. I love the soaring steel-mesh roof (28 ft. at its highest point—enough for even the tallest cactus specimen in the beds below) and the pillars with rectangular windows painted a shade of red called Spiced Rum. This kind of structure doesn’t come cheap; construction cost $500,000 according to this article.

There are so many interesting cacti and other succulents in the Sybil B. Harrington Cactus and Succulent Galleries that I could have done several posts on this section alone. But I’m sure you’re reaching the saturation point so I’d better stop.

There’s no better way to wrap up this series on the Desert Botanical Garden than with a few photos of Arizona’s most iconic plant: the saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea).

Here are some fun facts about saguaros (various online sources):

A typical saguaro can live 150-200 years.

A saguaro isn’t considered an adult until it’s 125 years old.

Arms don’t grow until the saguaro is approx. 70 years old.

Flowers don’t appear until the saguaro is at least 35 years old.

The saguaro’s roots are just 4-6 inch deep. There is only one taproot that goes straight down for 2-5 feet in search of water.

The saguaro is one of the world’s heaviest plants. Because it contains so much water, an adult can weigh up to 6 tons.

A finally a human-interest story involving a saguaro that is too quirky not to share (source):

Although the saguaros are awe-inspiring, they've also got a mean streak, according to local lore:

A Phoenix man must have been having a bad day when he pulled into his driveway, brushed past the saguaro in his front yard and went into his house for his gun. He took his frustration out on the plant, using it as target practice as he emptied the bullet chamber.

In a last bit of self-defense, the saguaro toppled over on top of him, crushing him under the weight of the tons of water stored in its branches.

Urban legend or not? The story could be true. It jives with this story of an idiot who did some target shooting at a saguaro when a 4-foot arm broke off, fell on top of him, and killed him. Revenge of the cactus!

Great photos. Thanks for sharing your tour of this impressive botanical garden (which I liked more than Sunnylands). As California's drought appears determined to draw out indefinitely, I'm adding more and more succulents to my own garden every year.

$500,000 for the canopy? I'll take two! [Seriously, I'm coveting that rusty steel ramada you photographed in Civano.] Beautiful photos -- my want-list of aloes is getting longer and longer. The Arizona Tourism Board should pay you a lot for post like these!

My favorite thing about these posts is being reminded of how diverse the desert flora is. I really love seeing colonies of plants that I usually can only see as tiny individual potted specimens. So nice!